| Alex Zanardi / Real Sports | | Date Created: Dec 09, 2005, 01:03 PM |
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I strongly encourage you to catch one of the many replays of Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel in the coming days on HBO. (And you can still read our first Ph.D. guest blog by scrolling a few inches downward.)
Gumbel visits with Alex Zanardi, who lost both legs in a horrific Champ Car crash in Lausitz, Germany a few days following the Sept. 11 attacks here in the States. Zanardi has since returned to the track, winning in the Italian Touring Car Championship. The piece is an emotional display of the optimism and positive attitude from Zanardi.
My initial impressions of Zanardi were less than glowing - primarily because he was piloting a Honda-powered race car for Chip Ganassi's team - and regularly kicking our ass on the Mercedes-Benz-powered side of the ledger. It seemed each of his improbable or unthinkable moves (even several off the actual racing surface) were at the expense of one of our drivers and teams. But, there was no denying his talent and his infectious joy - especially his trend-setting and yet-to-be-matched smoking, twirling victory donuts. Set the Tivo. Get the VHS warmed up. Find the schedule of re-airings here. |
 The show also has an entertaining segment with famed sports photographer Neil Leifer. Leifer's buddy and rival, Walter Iooss, is interviewed in the piece. Iooss photographed Dale Jr. at Richmond in 2002 for a Sports Illustrated cover, but an ominous mid-day sky meant the editors at S.I. weren't pleased with the end result.
Peter Gregoire eventually shot the actual cover photo (left) along the backstretch at Lowe's Motor Speedway a few weeks later.
That particular S.I. article by Jeff MacGregor - author of Sunday Money - is the first appearance I can recall of the "NASCAR Nation" phrase. (Can anyone think of an earlier usage?) |
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Mr. Peanut Needs TWO..."
It's always fun to find a great image from the ol' archives, but this one brought an audible chuckle. In 1995, I worked with Mike Mooney - now strictly big-time managing Nextel's media work with NASCAR - on the publicity program for driver Mike "Magic Shoes" McLaughlin and the French's Mustard/Black Flag Bug Spray Team 34 Busch Series team. (How's that for a sponsor combo?!) It seems Mr. Peanut must have had a Lil' Peanut at home that was a Magic Shoes fan, because when Mike signed for him, he asked for a second signature. (Bonus points for identifying the legend sitting to Mike's left... )
Saturday / Sling(blade) Update: I'm no doctor. And I don't play one on TV. But everyone can take a deep breath and step away from the ledge. Despite some panicked e-mails claiming otherwise, Junior does not have any fractures of his right or left arm. He had a minor procedure done to remove calcium build-up in his wrist. It's a chronic condition he's had for several years, and apparently decided to have it taken care of Friday morning. If anything serious were to happen - we'd let you know about it.
(and a polite reminder: the movie "3" - now being resurrected on a cable network near you - is an embarrassing and completely fabricated piece of pure excrement.)
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